Specialty Food Association Shifts Summer Fancy Food Show to September

The Specialty Food Association (SFA) today announced it has moved its annual summer trade show to September.

Originally scheduled for late June, the Summer 2021 Fancy Food Show, renamed as the Fancy Food Show, will now be held September 27-29 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City. The show will be the sole SFA in-person event for this year, after the Winter 2021 Fancy Food Show was previously cancelled.

In a release, the SFA said that after consulting with local authorities, it determined that the timing shift would give the organization the most “viable” chance to move forward with an in person event.

“We are grateful to our members, New York State and City officials, and the Javits Center, for working with us on determining the best course of action during these uncertain times,” Bill Lynch, president of the SFA, said. “Safely and creatively supporting our members, and the specialty food industry overall, remains our number one priority.”

Lynch was appointed SFA president in November 2020.

The SFA also announced that the show will undergo some “modifications,” which were not disclosed at this time. New Safe at Fancy Food Events (SAFFE) guidelines will be released “shortly” to detail both the actions that the organization will take to preserve safety as well as the measures show attendees and participants will be required to follow.

Those exhibitors who have already confirmed space for the Summer event will receive an email the first week of March to select their new locations, and other companies will be able to sign up for space starting in April.

Meanwhile, distributor KeHE last week announced the cancellation of its in-person Holiday Show. Scheduled for June 17 and 18 in Chicago, the event will also move to a virtual format. KeHE also had to hold its 2020 Holiday Show as a virtual event, a move that was incredibly successful, the distributor said in a release, with over 5,000 attendees and nearly 600 exhibiting suppliers, who collectively saw a more than 40% increase in overall sales placed during the show.